Apple offers plenty of free applications for use on devices such as the iPod Touch or the iPhone but many of them are simply small samplings designed to pique your interest and urge you to purchase full versions at a nominal price. Whether you just want a few more Angry Birds levels or don’t want annoying ads pestering you during Social Girl, purchasing the full version of apps definitely adds convenience and helps developers afford a few more packs of ramen noodles in the process. One of the qualms of purchasing applications however is what to do with them if you inevitably drop and damage your iPod or just want to upgrade to a 4^th Generation or other newer model. Luckily, there are a couple convenient ways to transfer applications to a new iPod Touch.

Transferring Applications To A New iPod Touch With ITunes

You may wonder why Apple asks for your user ID whenever you download a new application, free or otherwise. The truth is, your information is stored not only on your iPod Touch but also ‘in the clouds’ on the iTunes server. Therefore, if you ever have to reset your iPod Touch or if you lose all the data you can simply go to the apps store to download and re-install your purchased and free apps. As long as you use the same iTunes user account with the correct password, the iTunes store will recognize that you’ve already purchased the software and you won’t be charged again. Of course, reinstalling this data is easy on the same device but takes a little longer if your iPod Touch becomes lost, broken, or stolen by a rival Social Girl so the following tips will help you quickly transfer applications to a new or different iPod Touch.

What To Do Before Your iPod Touch Gets Lost, Broken, or Stolen by a Rival Social Girl
Synching Your iPod To A Computer

Instead of trying to remember which apps you had installed on your old iPod Touch, you can sync the device to a desktop computer to transfer multiple apps in an instant. Syncing your iPod is great for backing up important information and as an extra way to save your purchased applications. The steps for syncing your iPod Touch are pretty simple:

1. Connect an iPod USB cable to the desktop computer and also your iPod
2. Download iTunes to your computer or open the software if it’s already installed
3. In iTunes, select your iPod from the list of devices on the left hand side
4. Select the “Apps” folder from your iPod menu
5. Check the box next to any or all apps you want to sync
6. Select Sync to ‘unite’ your iPod and this computer

Transferring Apps To A New iPod Touch With “Restore”

Once the tears have dried up after you inadvertently used your old iPod as a basketball and you’ve shelled out a couple hundred bucks for a new one, you’ll use the ‘restore’ option to quickly retrieve all your old apps. Turn on the new iPod and navigate through the first couple welcome screens. One of the wizards will ask you if you want to set up the iPod as ‘new’ or ‘restore from a previous version’. Just hook up the new iPod to your previously synced computer and your apps should restore within a few minutes as they transfer.

There are limitations as you can currently only transfer purchased apps to a maximum of 5 different devices but this is another way to protect the developers from mass distribution. Also, some apps will have to be updated if your new iPod has a newer operating system or if the developers have made alterations in the programs to fix bugs or add improvements. Either way, these short downloads will leave you much more time to work your way up the online ladder to become the next Social Girl.